M.Goodall, A.Tagg British Aircraft before the Great War (Schiffer)
Deleted by request of (c)Schiffer Publishing
TWINING AEROPLANE Co. (E.W. Twining, 29b Grosvenor Rd., Hanwell, Middlesex)
E.W. Twining began as a model maker and progressed to the construction of full size gliders and powered aircraft. In May 1910 his advertisement offered three types of glider. No.l of 22ft span cost .15; No.2 costing .25 was probably of 24ft span and placed the pilot in the prone position. No.3 was of 30ft span and cost .65.
TWINING type 1 glider 1910
An example of No.1 was sold and taken by the owner, K.R. Murray, to St. Moritz in February 1910, to glide on the snow-covered slopes. This type was a simple two bay boxkite of Chanute type, without camber, with tail booms carrying a biplane tailplane and fin. The operator stood in the center section gap, the machine being supported on curved skids. In Switzerland the owner equipped himself with skis.
TWINING type 2A glider 1910
This was a more advanced machine with three bay wings and cambered surfaces. The operator sat in the structure forward of the wing. The machine stood on two skids, which curved upwards to meet struts running from the top wing, forming a nose boom for the front elevator. There was no tail or rudder, both directional and lateral control being obtained by 'dihedral lateral balancers' ailerons set at 45 degrees to the horizontal, between the outboard interplane struts, these providing or dumping lift as directed.
TWINING type 1 glider 1911
In 1911 Twining wrote articles in The Aero describing several versions of his gliders. The first was a variant of the 1910 No. 1, the Chanute type, with three bay wings and ailerons mounted on the outboard interplane struts. The twin fins and tailplane were fixed, control being obtained by weight shift by the operator, who was supported on bolsters under his arms. The machine was constructed of ash and spruce.
Data
Span 22ft
Chord 4ft
Area 170 sq. ft
Length 12ft 2in
TWINING type 1A glider 1911
This was a further variant of the type 1 with changes proposed by Maurice Wright, later an RNAS officer and Fairey Aviation director. It featured a wheel undercarriage with skids, a seat for the pilot and an elevator.
Data
Span 25ft
Chord 4ft 6in
Area 225 sq. ft
Area tailplane 17 1/2 sq. ft
Area elevator 11 sq. ft
Length 18ft 2in
Weight 75 lb.
TWINING type 2 glider 1911
A tailless glider, similar to the early Wright type, was described in August and October. In this the pilot was in a prone position and had a front elevator control. Ailerons were mounted on the outboard interplane struts of the three bay wings.
Data
Span 25ft
Chord 4ft 6in
Area 210 sq. ft
Length 13ft 3in
Area elevator 25 sq. ft
P.Lewis British Aircraft 1809-1914 (Putnam)
Twining Glider
The Twining Glider was a biplane built during 1910 at Hanwell by the Twining Aeroplane Co., and was designed by E. W. Twining, who also created many model gliders and aeroplanes, some of which were marketed by toyshops as late as 1920. He was an artist and a draughtsman of exceptional skill, and in later life settled in Bristol, where he designed stained-glass windows. During the Second World War he made a brief return to aviation as a project draughtsman with the Bristol Aeroplane Co., whence he retired in 1946.
